Diabetic patients typically monitor their blood glucose levels at home or at other non-clinical sites by means of disposable test strips and a battery-powered, hand-held analyzer (blood glucose meter). As a non-limiting, such a meter may comprise a Home diagnostics Blood Glucose Meter, Model No. SIQ452, which has a configuration depicted in the front perspective view of FIG. 1 and the rear perspective view of FIG. 2. As shown therein, the front 10 of the blood glucose meter 1 has a blood sample strip-receiving region 11, into which the user inserts a disposable test strip containing a blood sample for analysis by the meter. The front of the meter also contains a display screen 12 that displays the results of the blood glucose analysis.
The back 20 of the meter contains a battery compartment 21, while a side region 30 of the meter contains a data communication port 31 through which the user may couple the meter to a data terminal device, such as a computer, or to a data communication device, such as a wireline or wireless modem. This dataport connection allows the results of a blood glucose analysis performed and stored by the meter to be reported via a telecommunication link to a healthcare facility that keeps track of the patient's progress over the course of a blood glucose treatment program.
A significant shortcoming associated with the use of medical devices of the type described above is the fact that the user, particularly an elderly person, may not have access to a computer or an associated modem, or be familiar with how to use such equipment. Indeed, very few patients use computer capture of data, and even fewer healthcare providers have direct access to this clinically valuable information. The only recourse is for the user to attempt to call a healthcare provider's information collection site with the information displayed on the screen—a chore that is problematic at best.